The Love That Binds Us
by White Hair Wolven
Summary: [Naruhina] When faced with certain circumstances, those who function well in a group must leave and deal all by himself, unfornately that's not going to happen. (Formally Witness To Another's Destiny)
1. Chapter 1: Sacrifice

White Haired Wolven here, or you can just call me Wolvie.

Disclaimer: You all know the drill; nothing related to Naruto is mine

"Naruto" – Speech  
'_Naruto'_ – Thought  
**Naruto** – Sound

_Naruto_ - Song

Well, now that that's cleared up, let the story begin.

For once in a very long while, Hyuuga Hinata was enjoying herself.

'_Father would be so mad if he found out'_ The young heiress thought, dread pooling in her stomach as she imagined of her father's response _'Maybe sneaking out for a stroll wasn't such a good idea'_

But as quickly as that feeling came, she banished it from mind and she resumed her walk.

"No, he won't find out" Hinata said to her self, making sure no one could hear her first, but never the less, it did the trick.

After the attack of the both sand and sound ninja villages, the hidden village of Konoha was in bad shape. As the dark haired girl walked down one of the dustier, outer roads of the village, her pearl colour eyes took in all the rubble and debris that had been collected and put in several small piles along the side of the road.

'_So much has been destroyed'_ Hinata thought to herself _'I guess this will mean we'll all be getting tougher missions'._

The thought of doing missions as a ninja triggered off a series of other thoughts, namely wondering how all her fellow genin were doing, especially one particular, loud-mouthed, hyperactive ninja.

'_Naruto-kun, I hope you're alright'_ The small Hyuuga thought to herself.

Even though Naruto danced around in her head almost constantly, she was more concerned than usual since she managed to catch a glimpse of the bruised and beaten ninja as he was being brought back to the village after his fight with that monster, otherwise known as 'Garra of the desert'. What was even worse was the fact that he had been called to join one of the legendary sennin on a mission only a few days after, not giving his wounds enough time to completely heal. Even though she greatly feared for his life while he was gone, the sight of him not only returning at full-heath, but also bringing the fifth hokage with him, lifted a great weight off her shoulders.

"Maybe I should go see how he's doing?" Hinata said out loud "Maybe bring him some ramen, he'll be so happy"

Closing her eyes, Hinata's face soon became very red, imagining exactly how she would want Naruto to thank her.

"My Hinata-chan" She heard from the mental image Naruto, picturing him getting down on one knee and holding her left hand in both of his "Thank you for caring so deeply about me, I would like to show my appreciation for you kind-heartedness, and so I wish for your hand in marriage"

"Oh Naruto-kun" The real Hinata moaned, cupping her heated face with both hands "I would love to be with you forever"

"Kaw" A crow called out over-head.

"Eh?" Hinata snapped out of her fantasy, twisting her head back and forth madly to see if anyone had seen her, luckily no one had.

"Oh well" The young Byakugan user sigh dejectedly "Maybe someday"

**Chink, Clack**

"What the?" The pearl-eyed girl said to herself

Almost directly above her, small pieces of brick belonging to the roof of a warehouse adjacent to the road Hinata was walking on began skipping down the steep roof and landed on the ground. Being both a ninja and the inheritor of one of the most powerful blood-limits in the entire village, Hinata's trained paranoia forced her to know what exactly caused those bricks to fall.

Using the years she spent training to be a genin, Hinata expertly bounded against the walls of a narrow alley until she gracefully flipped onto the tiled roof of the warehouse. Tough it was the perfect time of day to silently sneak out of the Hyuuga complex; the setting sun blinded her as she tried to locate her target.

"Byakugan" Hinata whispered to herself as she activated her blood-limit, the veins around her eyes became engorged with blood as she was endowed with a new type of sight, one that didn't depend on light.

She once again scanned the area, and this time her new strategy paid off, as only a few metres away, on the same rooftop as Hinata, a strange figure was silently trying to slink away.

"Hey, you" Hinata called out, her usual timidness fading as her ninja training took over.

The figure stood up, allowing Hinata to get a good view of her target. Based on the large upper body and flat chest, Hinata concluded the figure clothed in what seemed like the traditional ninja garb was male, but seeing how he was only slightly taller than her, he had to be around her age.

"Who are you?" Hinata asked slowly, some of her shyness returning.

Instead of an answer, the hooded boy slowly reached around behind his back, and as he watched Hinata lower herself into a defensive position, he threw a small white ball at her feet.

'_Stupid stupid stupid'_ Hinata repeated over and over again in her mind, while she coughed and shut her eyes after the ball exploded in a small cloud of smoke.

Since she naturally assumed him to throw a shuriken or a kunai, she automatically shifted her body to make it easy to dodge projectiles; unfortunately it left her awkwardly positioned for anything else, especially sudden movements like jumping backwards. Finished with berating herself mentally, Hinata stumbled out of the cloud, her de-activated eyes stinging and her throat itching, causing her to cough loudly. As the stinging in her eyes died down, Hinata managed to catch a glimpse of the dark ninja heading west, strait into the setting sun, the contrasting colours making him easy to see. As the last of the smoke exited her system, Hinata gave chase to the fleeing ninja, his slow and cautious movement made him almost impossible to detect, but gave Hinata, who had already lock on to him, the big advantage of speed. As she kept a relative distance away from her target, Hinata watched as he hopped from shadow to shadow, until he finally ended up at the western gate of the village, and unfortunately for him, there was an ANBU member standing guard.

"Halt" The ANBU wearing a crow mask said in a strong voice "Declare your name and reason for leaving"

The masked figure just stood there.

"If you do not declare your name and reason for leave, then I will have not choice to forcefully take you in for interrogation" The ANBU warned.

This time, the black ninja, raised his left hand, the back of it facing the ANBU. With a quick flick, the unknown ninja twisted his hand around, showing off the small mirror located on the palm of his hand. The ANBU shielded his eyes with his hands as the rays from the setting sun bounced off the reflective substance and focused on his eyes. Taking full advantage of the man's temporary blindness, the dark ninja hurled another ball, not unlike the one he threw at Hinata a few minutes ago, at the man's chest, and as the ball released a thick, black gas, the man gave a few coughs before falling unconscious on the dusty earth below.

Hinata watched in awe as she saw the boy outwit and subdue an ANBU in a matter of seconds, but before she could delve into the amazing feat further, the dark ninja leap over the gate and quickly darted into the forest.

'_What should I do? What should I do?'_ Hinata thought to herself, watching the boy disappear into the forest.

On one hand she could give chase, but if she accidentally gave away her position he would surely kill her, or on the other hand, she could report it to the ANBU squad, but then again, if he was able to take down one so quickly, he should be more than able to deal with a few, plus he would be too far gone to track.

Weighing out the pros and cons of the situation, Hinata soon realized that the culprit was hastily jumping on the tree branches, his position getting further and further away from her, and so, with her mind made up, Hinata gave chase.

And so the chase began.

---------------------------

'_Oh my god'_ Hinata thought, her heart pumping so loudly she worried he could hear it _'I'm really chasing him, no Kiba, no Shino, no Kurenai-sensai, just me'_

For a split second, she imagined Kiba's little dog barking angrily

'And of course, no Akamaru either' 

Hinata was snapped out of her thoughts as she saw the boy she was following suddenly stop on a tree branch. Standing perfectly still, Hinata watched on as the boy gracefully hopped off the branch, spinning and twirling as he fell, and landed on bended knee as he reached the grassy floor below. Still in the trees, Hinata could see the unknown ninja lift his shirt slightly, a weird red light glowing from his belly. Grasping the source of the light like he was in pain, the ninja slowly regained his erect posture and covered his stomach again, darting off into the setting sun.

'_What on earth was that?'_ Hinata mused, replaying the scene in her mind over and over _'It looked like he was in pain, but I couldn't see what was glowing'_

And so Hinata continued her pursuit of the strange ninja, though for some reason, the thought of bringing this figure in for the good of Konoha faded from her mind, in it's place was a very weird feeling, almost like she was drawn to this strange person, even though she had never seen him before in her life.

'_What is wrong with me?'_ Hinata asked rhetorically _'Why is he making me feel this way? I-I feel as though I can do nothing else but follow him'_

Fortunately, the years she spent training as a ninja allowed her subdue a small part of this strange emotion and keep her position hidden.

The two ninja's continued their trek, even though the sun had finally vanished from the horizon and the stars just began to appear, penetrating through the lush canopy and illuminating the forest with an eerie silver glow.

'_Where is he going?'_ Hinata questioned _'There's nothing west of Konoha, no villages, no cities, just that large waterfall, but why would he go there?'._

As the forest the two figures were darting through became less and less dense, the dark ninja began slowing his pace. Hinata followed suit as she too slowed down, keeping the same distance from him at all times. As she his behind the trunk of a particular thick tree, she watched on as the target finally stopped at the exit of the forest and at the foot of a rather tall hill. Watching on, Hinata could tell from the expansions of his chest that he was out of breath, obviously from that mad dash from Konoha. Watching the figure breath in and out repeatedly, Hinata found herself out of breath too, unconsciously breathing in large amounts of air and producing a little squeak with each breath. Realizing this, the young Hyuuga quickly covered her mouth with her hands, breathing through her nose and hoping the other ninja didn't hear her. As she dared to peek out the side of the trunk, she saw the figure sitting down on a tree stump, his back to her.

'That was too close' The purple haired girl thought to herself the panic in her system faded.

"You can come out now" The muffled voice of the figure called out

Hinata froze up in shock, how did he know she was there? Daring once more to look at the strange ninja, Hinata found him in the exact same spot, looking away from her.

'Maybe it wasn't me he was talking too' Hinata thought, trying to find an excuse to fool herself 'Maybe he's meeting someone here'

"Hinata" The black ninja finished.

Once again, Hinata was frozen in terror. She did not move, afraid the slightest of movements would cause the ninja to attack. Ever so slowly, Hinata peeked through a small hole in the trunk. From the hole she could see the upper back of the strange ninja. Still not showing her any sign of acknowledging her presence, the figure proceeded to remove his hood. As she watched him slowly remove the head cloth, the young Hyuuga saw spiky blond hair spill out and settle on the boy's head, and just below the hair, on his right shoulder blade, was a very small red circle with a black spiral on it.

'_Wait a minute'_ Hinata thought _'Blond hair, spiral sigil'_

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata called out weakly as she poked her head from the side of the trunk.

The young ninja didn't say anything. Turning around, his blue eyes settle on the pearl ones belonging to Hinata. Hinata's face instantly turned red as a tomato as her crush looked directly at her.

"N-Naruto-kun, what are you doing out here?" The blushing girl said softly as she slowly descended from the tree to the ground.

"Why are you here Hinata?" Naruto asked, ignoring her comment.

"I-I-I" Hinata stuttered, trying to find a place to hide behind.

"Please leave" Naruto said walking up to her so close he had to look down on the shorter girl.

Hinata couldn't move, let alone speak. There she was, inches away from the only one she ever loved, the combined smell of fresh clothing and Naruto's cologne seeping into her nostrils, even though he was somewhat cold in his request, she couldn't be in a more wanted place.

"Please" Naruto said again, softly.

Swallowing her shyness, Hinata spoke up.

"No Naruto-kun" The young girl said quietly.

Naruto's eyebrows raised and his eyes widened.

"Why not?" He asked, his hand slowly reaching for one of those knock out balls, just in case.

"Because you ran away from the village, I'm here to take you back" Hinata replied, even though she loved Naruto, she loved her home as well.

Expecting some resistance, or at least some harsh words, Hinata was shocked as she watched Naruto fall backwards, holding his stomach as he rolled around in laughter.

"Ha ha…I'm sorry I…ha ha…just wasn't expecting…HAHAHA" Naruto barely managed to say between spats of laughter.

Hinata was felt very annoyed and embarrassed at the boy's reaction to her serious response.

"NA.NARUTO-KUN!!" The young girl yelled out, releasing all of her anger, as well as a few tears.

"Eh?" Naruto stopped his laughter to see the girl in front of him, sniffling "What's the matter Hinata?"

"I-I should have known" Hinata sniffled as she wiped away a few tears "Stupid Hinata once again wrong and making mistakes"

"No, Hinata I'm sorry' Naruto tried to calm the young heiress "I didn't mean it like that, I just wanted to-"

Naruto's sentence was cut off as he watched the small girl disappear from sight before reappearing behind him and placing a single finger on the back of his neck.

"What in the hell?" Naruto said out loud as he felt his body crumple to the ground.

He tried to move, but it was if something was pinning him to the ground, the only thing he could move without restriction was his head.

"Sorry Naruto-kun" Hinata smiled sheepishly "But I had to do something to get you to talk.

"Hinata, I'm serious" Naruto said some-what annoyed "Stop this jutsu, I need to finish what I'm doing"

"What are you doing Naruto?" Hinata asked the boy, her smile gone "Is it so important that you needed to kill an ANBU?"

"What?" Naruto asked, "I didn't kill him, I just knocked him out"

"How could you, he's an ANBU" Hinata asked as she sat beside the paralysed ninja.

"Yeah, the fossil ANBU" Naruto laughed, a fox-like smile on his face "That guy's like 70, he trained the same time as the third, I'm surprised he's even allowed to be a ninja"

"Oh" Hinata said, her cheeks slightly flushed as her thoughts of Naruto being strong enough to tackle an ANBU vanished, she quickly recovered herself "Then why did you leave, what's so important that you can't tell me?"

"Um, I can't tell you" Naruto smile innocently, seriously, what else could he say?

"Naruto-kun" Hinata said slowly, even though it was Naruto, she found it quite fun toying with the boy.

"Well what did you expect me to say" The boy huffed "It's something I need to do alone?"

"Alright" Hinata sighed, defeated "Just tell me why you're dressed like that and I'll let you go and leave you alone"

"Thank you" Naruto said, "I'm dressed like this because this was my dad's"

"Your father's" Hinata repeated.

"Yeah" Naruto said, somewhat sadly "The third gave it to me, he said that my dad was a hero and wore this when he was a genin, I thought it would be the proper thing to wear when I-" he cut himself off, realizing what he was about to say.

"When you what, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked

"Our deal" Naruto said icily

"Oh, of course" Hinata replied sombrely

Hinata kneeled behind Naruto, softly lifted his head up, and poked the back of his neck. Instantly, Naruto felt like his entire body was emersed in hot water, but as the feeling faded, he found he could move again.

'_It's a shame I guess'_ Naruto thought about how quickly Hinata released the jutsu _'Her hands were really soft'_

"Well" Hinata began, standing up without looking at Naruto "I guess I'll see you later"

"Yeah" Naruto said softly, an unknown feeling entered his stomach as he lied to the girl.

And so the two parties walked off in separate directions, Hinata heading back into the dimly lit forest and back to Konoha, ready to face her father's wrath as he surely found out that she had left the complex, and Naruto heading up the hillside. Well, that would have been the plan, except as Hinata slowly walked off, she heard Naruto grunting in pain.

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata turned around to see the blond ninja doubled over in pain.

As Hinata got closer, she started to hear the shallow breathing of the hyperactive ninja. Closer still she began to hear the sickening sound like bones moving around inside a body, as she watched on she saw Naruto's hair grow out and spike up even more.

"Na…Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked again, growing insanely worried.

"Hinata, run" Naruto managed through racking breaths.

"What?" Hinata replied, placing a hand on one of the violently shaking shoulders belonging to Naruto.

"I SAID RUN" Naruto yelled, throwing the girl of his shoulder, but revealing to her his long hair, his extended fingers morphing into claws, his widened whisker marks, but worst of all, his blood red eyes with cat-like pupils.

"Naruto-kun, NARUTO-KUN" Were the last words Naruto heard before passing out from the pain.

----------------

_Cherry blossoms gracefully bloom o'er the fields that lie_

'_What's that?'_ Naruto thought to himself, his physical self was still unconscious _'It sounds like, singing?'_

_High up is the castle wall, where have warriors gone?_

'_It is singing'_ Naruto concluded _'But who's singing it?'_

_Where is the moonlight that brightly shone up high_

'_The voice is so sweet, are angels signing to me? Am I dead?' _Naruto wondered _'I could have died, that would make perfect sense'_

_Shone upon the warriors who drained the glasses dry?_

'_No, I'm not dead'_ Naruto determined _'but then, if angels aren't singing, who would be'_

--------------

"Oh Naruto-kun" Hinata spoke inwardly, breaking the song "I wanted you close, but not this way"

Sitting by the small campfire, Hinata rested the unconscious Naruto on her lap, keeping a constant watch in case he could hurt himself. Unbeknownst to her, Naruto had just woken up.

'What in the world is she saying?' Naruto thought, opening his eyes only slightly so the young kunoichi would stay unaware and keep talking.

"Oh well" The Hyuuga sighed, running her fingers up and down the whisker birthmarks on Naruto's face "Maybe it's better this way, who would think that such a determined ninja like yourself would ever like a dark weirdo like me?"

"I said I like people like you" Naruto said softly.

It took a few seconds for Hinata to realize that Naruto had spoken, and with a small squeak, practically threw Naruto off her body as she stood up, her red face illuminated by the fire.

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked shakily.

"Heh" Naruto gave his patented fox smile as he lifted himself up "Sorry for startling you"

"You really did scare me Naruto-kun" Hinata admitted, "I thought you died"

"Ah" Naruto said sadly "I'm sorry, I didn't mean for you to see that side of me"

"What was that thing?" Hinata asked, but clamped her mouth with her hands after she realised what a rude question that was.

Naruto looked into the fire sadly.

"I'm sorry Hinata" He responded, "It would be too much of a burden for you to carry if you know?"

"I don't care" Hinata said, walking closer to the boy "It must be tearing you up inside, having whatever that was in you and not telling anyone about it"

Naruto remained quiet, his eyes watching the flames of the fire dance.

"Um, well" Hinata mumbled, trying to switch from the obviously painful topic "Earlier today, why were you above me, there must have been easier ways to get out of the village?"

Naruto looked at the young Hyuuga.

"Before I left, I wanted to see off all of my friends" Naruto replied.

Honoured that Naruto recognised her as a friend, Hinata pressed the issue more.

"So, who else did you see?" She asked.

Naruto looked up and held his chin, thinking of all the people he visited.

"Well, there was Sasuke and Sakura-chan, they were easy because Sakura-chan's always with Sasuke at the hospital, I also saw Iruka-sensai for a while, then there was Lee, Shikamaru, Chouji, Neji, Shino, Kiba, Ino, Tenten, then I saw Kakashi-sensai, and then the ero-sennin and oba-chan, and finally you"

"Did you talk to any of them?" Hinata asked, remembering Naruto not saying a word to her before.

"No, I didn't think I'd want to leave if I had to talk to them all" Naruto answered, an undetecable amount of sadness in his voice.

Hinata felt a small weight lift off her shoulders.

"Um, Naruto-kun" Hinata said shyly.

"Mmm?" Naruto answered.

"Why did you see me last?" Hinata knew this was a rude and selfish question but she couldn't help herself.

Naruto gave her a small smile, much to her relief.

"Because I didn't think I could go through with my mission if I didn't have some inspiration"

Hinata's face was rushed with blood so fast, she actually felt dizzy. She had never heard something so amazing as someone drawing strength from her, especially Naruto. She had always assumed that Naruto was an infinte beacon of determination and courage, one she could look to and fill with such feelings, completely unaware that it was Naruto himself who also looked to her as a source of power. But besides from that, it was incredably flattering.

"Ooh, Naruto-kun" Hinata whispered to herself as she looked at the smiling boy.

"Um, Hinata" Naruto said quietly, acting somewhat like Hinata.

"Yes Naruto-kun?" Hinata answered.

"Do you think" Naruto began, finding it hard to ask such an odd request "That song you were singing, could you finish it, for me?"

Hinata was taken back a bit, but quickly recovered with a smile.

"Of course Naruto-Kun" She replied as her smile grew.

"Thanks, you have a really nice singing voice" Naruto stated, scratching the back of his head occasionally.

Hinata smiled as she began singing from the start.

_Cherry blossoms gracefully bloom o'er the fields that lie,  
High up is the castle wall, where have warriors gone?  
Where is the moonlight that brightly shone up high,  
Shone upon the warriors who drained the glasses dry?_

White frost o'er the autumn camps freezing the whole night,  
Flocks of wild geese cry and pass just below the moon.  
Where is the moonlight that might have shone so bright,   
Shone upon the warriors' swords gleaming through the night?

Oh, the moon is rising high in the depths of night,  
Silent is the ruined site lying on the ground,  
Ivies creep o'er the gate in the cold moonlight,  
Rustling are the pine trees through the windy night.

To rise and fall is people's fate, the moon shines so bright,  
Looking down upon the world lying far below,  
How sublime the moonlight o'er the ruined site,  
How I love the moon that shines in the depths of night!

As Hinata's voice died down, she ears were filled with the sound of Naruto clapping softly.

"That was great Hinata" Naruto beamed at her.

Hinata blushed from his approval.

"But" Naruto began, his face becoming confused "Why haven't I ever heard you sing before? Someone with such a lovely voice should sing as often as they can"

"Thank you Naruto-kun" Hinata's smile died away after that "I guess because you're the second person I sang to, and the first who liked it"

"Who couldn't like that?" Naruto asked, oblivious to the painful memories Hinata was seeing.

"My father" Hinata sighed, not looking at her crush "My mother taught me that song, and when she died, I tried to sing like her, but when I sang for my father, he just stormed out of the room furiously"

Naruto, watched as tears from the two pearls on Hinata's face fell to the sandy earth below, glistening in the as they fell.

"Ah, don't worry about it Hinata" Naruto said, acting like his old self, even though he wanted to comfort her another way, he sat still "That old Billy goat wouldn't know greatness if it bit him in his-"

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata said, shocked that anyone would ever bad-mouth her father, the powerful Hyuuga ruler.

Naruto just looked at her and chuckled.

"I think it's time you went to sleep" Naruto said, seeing the young Hyuuga yawn and rub her eyes sleepily.

"Will you sleep Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked.

"I'll stay with you until you fall asleep, then I'll begin my mission" Naruto answered

"Will you be here when I wake up?" Hinata asked.

"You better get to bed, it's quite a while from Konoha" Naruto said quickly, avoiding the question totally.

"Alright" Hinata said as she rolled over, her back to Naruto.

Naruto never expected to take to the idea so easily.

A few hours passed as Naruto kept guard on the sleeping Hinata, stoking the fire or warding off animals, he did it all to ensure she was safe.

'_Well'_ Naruto thought as he stood up and stretched _'Better get going'_

Naruto began quietly walking up the tall hill; completely unaware that another was right on his trail.

Finally reaching the top of the hill, Naruto looked down the other side. A giant waterfall cascaded down the eroded side, rocks at the bottom seemed to glitter as the moonlight hit them, but as all things are in nature, what is beautiful is usually deadly.

'At least I hope in this case it is' Naruto thought as he shuffled to the very edge of the cliff.

As he breathed in the sweet air of his last breath, Naruto prepared to let he fall, that was until…

"NARUTO!" A voice screamed out behind him.

"Hinata?" Naruto's face changed from confused to angry.

"Why are you here, I told you to stay away, why don't you ever listen?" Naruto raged, the anger in his voice scaring the purple haired girl.

"I-I couldn't let you do this" Hinata barely managed to get out.

"WHY?" Naruto yelled "WHY CAN'T YOU LET ME DO THIS?"

"So you really want to do this?" Hinata whispered

Diverting his rage, Naruto imagined all his source of displeasure on a large boulder. Clenching his hand, Naruto drove his fist strait into the massive rock, watching in pleasure as his chakra blasted the rock into a thousand bits. Rubbing his hand slightly, Naruto looked at Hinata then turned back towards the cliff.

"Please Naruto-kun" Hinata pleaded, holding the blue-eyed boy by his arm "Please answer me"

"NO!" Naruto shouted, his anger returning as he faced the girl and gripped her shoulders "I never wanted this, I never wanted to end my life, I want to live, I want to be Hokage, I wanted to start a family, I wanted to be with the people I loved, I-I-I"

Finding this torment incredibly exhausting, Naruto fell to his knees, and was about to fall strait down; instead he felt his headrest against the soft fabric of Hinata's jacket. Completely clueless on what to say, Hinata's womanly instincts guided her hands to the back of the boy's head and gently pressed him against her stomach. Hearing sobs coming from the boy's engulfed face, Hinata pressed a little harder as she felt Naruto grip the sides of her jacket.

"Shh" Hinata cooed the weeping boy, slowly running her hands through his hair.

As the sobs from Naruto died down, Hinata released her hands and looked down on Naruto. It was evident from the calm look on Naruto's face that all those pent up emotions had been released.

"Thank you Hinata" Naruto sniffed as he stood up, wiping the remaining tears away from his face with his sleeve "Sorry for putting you through that"

"It's alright Naruto-kun" Hinata smiled.

"Please leave, I don't want you to see this" Naruto asked the kunoichi.

"You really have to do this?" Hinata dared to ask.

"Yeah, can't do anything about it" Naruto answered, walking to the edge.

As Naruto prepared to sacrifice himself for the greater good, he felt a gentle tap on his shoulder.

"Hinata I thought I asked you to lea-"

Before Naruto could finish, his lips became pressed against the once timid girl's. Taking a small step back, Naruto could feel the raw emotion Hinata was putting into the kiss, not that he minded, for a long time Naruto had loved the girl, not the puppy love he had for Sakura, but a pure love that he had been too frightened by damaging the girl's reputation to declare.

"Hinata I-" Naruto gasped, as the kiss was broken momentarily before Hinata resumed it.

"Shh, I know" Hinata answered, gently moving Naruto backwards until they reached the end of the cliff and fell.

As the two descending lovers entwined both their bodies and their spirits, a burst of light exploded around them, and from Naruto's back emerged nine brilliantly glowing foxtails. The nine tails entwined each other, forming a fiery cocoon around the two ninja.

"Naruto-kun, it's so beautiful," Hinata whispered before resuming their eternal kiss.

----------------------

"Ah, I see" The ex-ANBU and former teacher to Naruto said emotionlessly "The seal was deteriorating"

After reports from an explosion to the west around the border of the fire country, Kakashi and a few ANBU were sent to report. Kakashi felt familiar feelings well up as he saw the pristine body of Naruto, his belly smoking slightly. As the ANBU retrieved the bodies of Naruto and Hinata and waited for Kakashi's orders, the jounin simply told them to go without him. As the team left, Kakashi sat down on a large rock.

"Naruto" The teacher said as he rubbed his eyes, tears dribbling down his face and blotting his mask "You knew what you had to do and did it, regardless of your life, that makes you a true ninja hero"

After wiping the tears away with his thumb, the lazy jounin gazed at clear sky above.

'_Obito, Rin, treat those two well up there'_

------------------------

"Damn, Naruto" Jiraiya sniffed, he was currently in the office of the Hokage, leaning in a corner as he watched Shizune try desperately to calm the newest Hokage.

"Tsunade-san please, we're all devastated by this news" Shizune said, Ton Ton gave a agreeing call

"God-damn that kid" Tsunade cried into her hands "Running off without telling me, I could have done something, anything"

"No" Jiraiya spoke up, gaining the women's attention "Naruto knew the only way to restore the seal was to sacrifice another life, he would rather see himself dead then letting anyone else die".

"HOKAGE" A voice boomed through the large room as the doors slammed open to reveal Hyuuga Hiashi, father of Hinata "I DEMAND TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO MY DAUGHTER IMMEDIATELY"

"Calm down Hyuuga" Jiraiya said "Another time"

"NO, I WANT ANSWERS NOW" The white eyed man yelled at the frog hermit "IF THAT DAMN MONSTER KILLED MY DAUGHTER, THEN I DESERVE THE RIGHT T-"

Hiashi at that moment found it hard to finish his sentence, for his body was lifted up two feet into the air, his throat clutched by the current Hokage

"Don't you EVER call Naruto a monster" Tsunade growled, applying more pressure "He has done more for this village than you have, all you care of is your clan you selfish bastard"

"Tsunade, calm yourself" Jiraiya grabbed the young arm of the 50 year old woman "Would Naruto want to see you like this?"

At those words, Tsunade loosened her hold, allowing the Hyuuga to fall to the floor and scurry back a few feet. Hear the name Naruto brought on a fresh wave of tears as she dove into her teammate's shoulder and bawled her eyes out. Hiashi, humiliated at such an easy defeat, muttered curses of revenge as he walked out of the room, holding his throat slightly

"I'll go inform the people," Shizune offered as she passed the weeping woman.

-------------------

The news of Naruto's death hit the people like a shock wave. Since most of the adults saw Naruto as 'That demon kid' they naturally assumed this was a day of celebration, how wrong they were. The people knew that Naruto was a friend of the Hokage and so they were incredibly frightened to hear that if she or her ANBU heard the slightest resentment of Naruto or his deeds, the said offender would be exiled from the village forever.

Unlike the rest of the village, the thought of this being a joyous occasion never crossed the minds of those few who really knew Naruto. Those young enough to know Naruto as a comrade were explained the motive of the ninja's sacrifice, but that meant revealing to them the secret of the Kyuubi.

"And so it was Naruto who was chosen to be the container" Tsunade said, concluding the story she just told Naruto and Hinata's friends.

The group of genin and one chuunin sat quietly, letting all that they had heard sink in.

"Are there any questions?" Tsunade asked, looking at the downcast group.

Neji slowly raised his hand.

"Yes Neji?" The female Hokage said

"I understand what Naruto had to do now" Neji began, all eyes in the room focused on him "But what of Hinata, what was her role in this?"

"We don't truly know" Tsunade answered

"She must have tried to stop him from leaving, or maybe even to help him" Shikamaru added.

"Shikamaru" A crying Ino scolded the boy "Don't be so heartless, we just lost two of our friends and you just talk about their deaths so casually"

"QUIET" Neji yelled at the girl, who stop talking immediately "Shikamaru, you are an expert at deducing theories from facts, please tell me what you think of Hinata's part"

"I'm sorry Neji" The lazy chuunin answered, watching the Hyuuga genius' face sag in disappointment "I need to collect more facts before I can give you anything"

And so the group of young ninja, as well as there teachers behind them, sat in the Hokage's room, silently grieving over the ones named Naruto and Hinata, two souls drawn together by destiny and so quickly taken away from the ones who loved them.

------------------

I always wanted this to be just one long story, so I gave it a massive over-haul. I found this quite moving on my half, but that's my opinion. Hope you like it too, and remember to get those reviews in – Wolvie.


	2. Chapter 2: Redemption

White Haired Wolven here, or you can just call me Wolvie.

Disclaimer: You all know the drill; nothing related to Naruto is mine

"Naruto" – Speech  
'_Naruto'_ – Thought  
**Naruto** – Sound

I just couldn't finish like that, so I did this because I just love happy endings.

Drip, drip

'Huh?' Naruto thought as he slowly blinked, trying to wash away his blurred vision 'Aren't I dead?'

Drip, drip

'Kami that's annoying' Naruto tried to get up, but as he moved he suddenly found himself in shallow water, bobbing just above the concrete below "Oh please, anywhere but there"

"Look's like luck isn't on your side brat" A low and menacing voice echoed through the dimly lit, flooded concrete corridors.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me" Naruto yelled, his voice reverberating across the walls "Even after all I've done, my ultimate sacrifice, and I still didn't get rid of you"

"Fat chance brat, I'm here to stay" The voice chuckled

"Ah go to hell Kyuubi" Naruto suggested defiantly

Buried within the shadows, a pair of giant eyes opened, revealing two crimson, cat-like pupils. As the lights flickered slightly, the shadows retreated back to show a giant cage, the bars shut tight with a tiny but powerful seal acting as a lock. Inside this prison dwelled the mighty demon fox, his nine tails flapping lazily as the giant sat, looking at Naruto with an amused expression.

"Aren't we already?"

"What?" Naruto said "But, if you're still here, then I didn't die"

Kyuubi snickered "Wrong again you idiot, you're quiet dead, as well as that little Hyuuga that you care so much about"

That information hit Naruto like a fist, a wave of guilt washed over him.

"Hinata" He sighed

"Yes, that's the one" Kyuubi said "A shame you'll never see her again"

"Grr, you bastard" Naruto growled "I wish you could come out of that cage so I could kick your arse personally"

"You're wish is my command" Kyuubi laughed as he swiped at the bars.

"Tch, you've tried that before, baka" Naruto stated

Before another word could be exchanged, the seal on the bars slowly ignited, burning up as it was devoured. When the last of the seal turned to ash, the bars now had thin, red lines forming on them, and as less than a second had passed, the bars fell into pieces.

"Uh oh" Naruto said with a blank expression.

"Oh yes" Kyuubi said as he took his first step out.

As the red paw touched the flooded area, steam started spewing out under him, and with each massive step he took, more and more steam was created. Taking this as a very, very bad situation, Naruto drew a kunai from his pouch and stepped into a defensive position. Closer and closer the massive fox came, each footstep shaking the surrounding area, causing the lights to flicker violently. Like a crimson wave, the Kyuubi pounced at Naruto, his massive paw catching the black-clothed child and slamming him into a wall.

"Ba-Bastard fox" Naruto coughed, his head the only part of his body not being crushed by the gigantic appendage.

"Heh, I have to admit boy" Kyuubi smiled, adding more pressure "You've made my stay somewhat amusing, I love a good ending"

"It was all a game?" Naruto asked "My torment was all just a cheap show for you?"

Instead of replying, Kyuubi turned away, for some reason he couldn't look the boy in the eyes. Relaxing his hold, the demon withdrew his paw, sending the boy sliding down the wall and into what remained of the water.

"What?" Naruto gasped, completely bewildered.

"I never said that kid" Kyuubi said, sadness in his voice.

"What the hell has gotten into you?" Naruto asked.

Curling into a ball and crossing his front paws, Kyuubi faced Naruto and sighed, the exhaled air almost blowing the young shinobi over.

"Watching you, through your eyes" Kyuubi began, his voice reeking of power and concern "Those eyes, not even I could ignore something like that"

"What?" Naruto was astonished at the amount of compassion this demon was showing.

"Those eyes were meant for me, not for you child. I may be a demon, but there are some evils only man is capable of" The fox demon went on "You were caught in the cross-fire kit, if it means anything, I'm sorry for what happened to you"

"Has being here completely screwed your head?" Naruto asked, "You're a demon, demons don't have compassion, demons don't give a-"

"ENOUGH CHILD" The Kyuubi growled, silencing the boy "I may be a demon, I may have tried to destroy you're village just because I relish in the power, but saying I don't feel. To your eyes I may be a monster, things change, being caged like an animal made me change"

"Kyuubi?" Naruto said softly, the first time calling him by his given name

"Don't feel too bad kid" The demon sighed, "I probably deserved hell, I shouldn't have tried to break free"

"So you did try and break the seal, you're the reason we're both down here" Naruto yelled, pent up emotions breaking out.

"Indeed" Kyuubi said, "For the first time since my imprisonment, I felt like I was going to go completely insane if I didn't get out, I'm sorry it resulted in this though"

Naruto was silent. The conversation couldn't have gone any further, things had been explained, the Kyuubi apologized for his sins (This was a great shock to Naruto), so there really wasn't anything else to stay. For a while, the two sat in silence.

"Hey Kyuubi" Naruto finally spoke.

"Hmm?" The might fox grunted, his eye's looking up at the small shinobi.

"What happens now?" Naruto asked.

"I don't know kit" The monster sighed.

"I just wished I could have properly said goodbye" Naruto said sadly.

Kyuubi felt even more guilty.

"Hey brat" The red fox said.

"Yeah?" Naruto answered.

"We may be trapped here, but there is something I can do for you" The demon said, watching as the boy's face rose in excitement.

"Really, what is it?" Naruto asked excitedly.

"You want to see your friends?" The Kyuubi began "I can give you a gift to let you see them".

"Truly? Thank you Kyuubi-sama" Naruto thanked the massive fox politely.

"Then receive my gift, **EYES OF THE SHADOW FOX!**" With his eye's glowing brightly, the kitsune demon shot two red energy waves into Naruto's own eyes.

Naruto screamed out in pain as the beams hit, cramming a truck-load of pain into his skull. After a few of the longest seconds he ever experienced, Naruto's head finnaly cleared, and as he opened his eyes, he found himself not in the dark room he was once in, but in the overcast streets of Konoha.

'What in the world?' Naruto thought to himself.

'You're not really here kit, merely an astral form' Kyuubi's voice echoed in his head 'Explore all you want, and then call me when you want to return'.

Not needing another word, Naruto set off.

'I wonder how Iruka-sensei's doing?' Naruto thought.

Arriving at the Konoha acadamy, Naruto proceeded to enter the familiar class-room. Looking around, he saw the newest group of ninja students, Konahamaru and his gang amongst them. Turning to face his sensei, the blond shinobi was startled to see a steady flow of tears streaming from the scarred chuunin's eyes.

"Iruka-sensai?" Moegi, the girl in Konahamaru's gang raised her hand "Why are you crying?"

"I'm sorry class" Iruka began, trying desperately to stem the flow of tears "It's just the death of a very close friend has affected me so much"

"That Naruto guy?" A student said aloud "But my daddy said that it was a good thing that guy was gone, he said that he was an evil kid"

Before Naruto could shout out, the sound of breaking wood could be heard. The cut and bruising fist of Iruka was clearly visible through his desk.

"THAT'S ENOUGH" Iruka shouted, scaring the boy greatly "NO ONE SHALL EVER SPEAK LIKE THAT AGAIN, DO YOU HEAR ME!"

The class was silent and shivering in fear.

Looking at the cowering child, Iruka sighed as he slowly pulled his hand out of the desk "Classed dismissed" he said softly.

As most of the kids filed very quickly past the spectral Naruto and out of the class room, a sombre Konohamaru took one last glance at his teacher before leaving himself.

"Iruka-sensai" Naruto whispered as he watched the grown ninja collapse on his desk and cry.

Leaving the crying man, Naruto vacated the acadamy and proceeded to visit the remain team seven members. Thinking that they would be at the hospital, the blue eyed shinobi was surprised to find the room Sasuke once inhabited clean and tidy, and obviously empty of patients.

'Oh well, I'll find them later' Naruto decided as he set off to see his other friends.

With each one he visited, the watched from the side-lines the same reactions from his friends. Kakashi was training madly, his hand having multiple chakra burns from the chidori technique.

"How strong must I become before the people I care for cease to die?" Naruto heard from the grey-eyed jounin before he launched his sixth chidori at the massive boulder.

The same was with Neji, Naruto realised, watching as the byakugan user almost fell to the floor from exhaustion.

"Naruto, Hinata" The branch family member whispered "To go so far and pay the ultimate price for the people you care about, that's what I want to feel" and with that, he threw himself into another complex Jyuuken kata.

As Naruto moved on, he witnessed first-hand the negative effects his death had caused. Shikamaru had locked himself in his room, desperately trying to figure out Hinata's connection with Naruto's death.

"There's got to be a connection somewhere" The tired, sweaty and dirty boy sighed frustrated, scrunching up a page of theories and tossing it into the large pile of already scrunched papers.

Kiba had sunk into a depression, all he did was sit at the same swing he and Naruto used to play on with the others all day, a sombre Akamaru at his master's feet. Chouji had also sunken into a depression, downright ignoring any food that was offered to him. Shino seemed the same as Neji and Kakashi, throwing himself into viscious combat with several bug-bunshins. Ino herself was greif stricken at her friend's deaths, she tended the flowers like usual, but the difference was that she was destroying them, finding their destruction a way to numb the sadness. Ten Ten, a close friend of Neji and in turn Hinata, had all but given up on being a shinobi, absent-mindedly throwing a kunai at a target, only to hear it clutter to the ground, obviously missing it's mark, but the brown-haired girl only gave a small sigh and left the training area, her weapons still lying on the ground. Lee was also greatly sad, the greif actually made him break him his 'my-rules' training.

"What's the use, my hard work couldn't save a friend" Lee sighed as he left the beaten log.

'Kami this is painful' Naruto thought as tears of his own fell to the ground.

The blind shinobi continued seeing all his friends. His next stop was the hokage Tsunade and his old teacher Jiraiya.

Walking slowly to the main office building, Naruto passed a small bar and heard a small 'hic' from a woman patron. Instantly realizing it was Tsunade, Naruto rushed in.

After two seconds, he wished he hadn't.

There she was, the leader of Konoha and proclaimed strongest ninja, drinking her ass off, she looked so pitiful.

"That bloody kid" Tsunade slurred "Caused me nothing but trouble, OH GODS HOW I MISS HIM"

"There there Tsunade" Jiraiya said as his old friend wailed into his chest "Naruto's death is hard, I know that, but life goes on"

"WHAT'S THE FREAKING POINT?" The blond woman wailed "NAWAKI, DAN, THEY ALL DIE, AND IT'S MY FAULT, THAT BLOODY NECKLACE, I SHOULD HAVE NEVER GIVEN IT TO NARUTO"

"Come now, you don't mean that" Jairaiya cooed, rubbing the woman's arms soothingly "I think you've just had too much to drink"

"DAMMIT I'LL TELL YOU WHEN I'VE HAD ENOUGH!" Tsunade yelled as she slammed her fist on the bar counter, breaking it in an explosion of wood chips.

Naruto couldn't take any more, he had to leave before he went mad with grief.

'Just Sakura-chan and Sasuke to go' Naruto thought.

Knowing Sasuke, he would probably be the same place Naruto had left this mortal coil. As he exited the familiar gate, Naruto eyed the main headline on the Konoha Newspaper. Apparently his death had affected not only the hidden leaf village, but the sand as well. As he read on, Naruto found that after hearing about his death, Gaara had lost all the hope Naruto had given him, sending the sand shinobi over the edge, and allowing the sand badger to be free, proceeded to demolish the entire sand village, before turning on himself and ending his own life.

Making it to the massive waterfall as fast as he could, Naruto pushed a few bushes away to reveal his two team-mates, Sakura looking sad, while Sasuke holding his usual cold expression.

"This is where he killed himself?" Sakura asked.

A the emotionless face of Sasuke nodded.

"To go that far, Naruto was a true hero"

Naruto's mood brightened a small bit from that comment.

"He was a fool" Sasuke responded, kicking a pebble off the cliff.

"What?" Naruto and Sakura said simultaneously, though Sasuke couldn't here Naruto.

"If he wanted to die, he should have done it in combat, against me" Sasuke clenched his fists so much that the wounds on them opened and freshed blowed flowed between his knuckles.

"But Sasuke, Naruto, he" Sakura couldn't form a complete sentence.

"I'm leaving" Sasuke said, turning away from the cliff.

"Alright, I'll see you in Konoha later" Sakura said.

"No, I'm leaving for good" Sasuke responded.

"What?" Sakura was shocked.

"I must avenge my clan, Itachi must die, and only one man can grant me the power I need" Sasuke stated, continuing to walk off.

"No, I'm not going to let you go" Sakura said, stepping infront of the dark boy.

"Move" Sasuke growled.

"No, we just lost Naruto, I'm not going to let you leave too, I don't want to be all alo-" Sakura's tear argument was cut off as Sasuke rammed a fist into her stomach, effectively sending her to the ground unconscious.

"You're a fool, and you will die sooner or later from your emotions" Sasuke said before continuing to walk off.

Witnessing all this, Naruto ran up to Sasuke and threw a punch at him, only for it to phase through him.

"Enough" Naruto cried as he slumped to the ground "I've seen enough, just take me back"

For a while, Naruto could only see darkness, but as the dark cleared, he opened his eyes to see the Kyuubi in front of him.

"I saw it all kit" Kyuubi said.

"It's horrible" Naruto whimpered.

"I agree" Kyuubi said, standing up "And because of that I hoped I hadn't had to use this technique"

"Huh?" Naruto asked.

"It will end my life, neigh my entire existence, from this time and all time, but if done right, will set all things right" Kyuubi answered

Naruto was speechless.

"You do not need to worry kit, you will vanish as well, but your life will not end, merely restart, but in a time where I do not exist" The red demon continued.

"Kyuubi" Naruto sniffled, tears dotting the ground below him "You would destroy yourself for me"

"Don't get sentimental kid" Kyuubi smiled "You're ruining my reputation"

Naruto continued crying, but looked up and smiled at the massive fox.

Fanning his nine-tails out, Kyuubi began to focus all the chakra he possessed. The amount of energy being generated by the massive fox shook the very foundations of the room, and soon after, the red flames of chakra glowed against the fox's red fur.

"This is it kid" Kyuubi said over the booming chakra "I'd like to say I hope we'd meet again, but we both know that isn't going to happen" and with that, a massive explosion of light hit naruto.

"Kyuubi" Naruto thought as his vision became nothing but red "For once in my life, I'm glad you were sealed inside me"

* * *

"What a beautiful boy" The mid-wife known as Tsunade said as she held up the wailing baby "But by Kami, what a pair of lungs" 

The father of the boy just laughed "Just like his old man".

"I'm glad you find it funny" The blond woman in the bed said "You're going to be hearing that at 2 am for the next year".

The two ladies laughed as the blue-eyed man's head sunk in defeat.

"How's things going in here" An aging grey maned man asked as he entered the room "What's that ungodly noise".

"Your god child's screaming" The new father laughed.

"God child huh?" The old man thought as a small trail of blood dribbled out from his nose "I need a new apprentice to help me with my newest book, to distract those bathing beauties while I jot down notes".

The death glares from both mother and mid-wife sent shivers down his spine "Okay okay, I was just joking, sheesh".

"I just got a great idea" The father said as he snapped his fingers "Why don't we set him up later with Hiashi's girl, she'll be born soon".

"Hokage or not" The new mother warned as she glared at her husband "You will not be making marital arrangements after 2 minutes after birth".

"Okay okay" The Yondaime laughed, sweat drops forming on his forehead.

"Um kids, as much as I hate to break up this lovely argument, we still have one thing to work out" Tsunade said as she handed the now quiet boy back to his mother "A name for the little tyke".

Both mother and father exchanged knowing smiles as they both turned to the female sennin.

"Naruto".

What can I say, I just love a happy ending. I'm sure you're all just dying to review……. Well, what are you waiting for, get cracking - Wolvie.


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